Tillmann told parole board he bought, sold stolen goods

A man at the centre of a major art and antique theft case admitted to authorities a few years ago that he had a penchant for buying stolen goods and reselling them, parole documents show.

John Mark Tillmann told parole board members during a hearing before his day parole release in May 2010 that there were instances in which he was never caught on theft and fencing offences. He’d been seeking release from prison on violence-related charges.

“You explained how you would purchase goods from others, knowing they were likely stolen, and would re-sell them,” state the parole papers. “You acknowledge that you engaged in other similar transactions for which you were not charged.”

Tillmann, now 51, had been handed a two-year federal prison term for assault, using force and uttering death threats and extortion in connection with an incident involving his then ex-girlfriend, the records said.

He was released to a half way house in the spring 2010, and successfully completed the terms of that release before his actual prison term date concluded in March 2011, a parole board spokeswoman said Friday.

Tillmann currently faces possession of four stolen items, including a Britsh general’s letter from 1758 that belongs to Dalhousie University.

But investigators have retrieved more than 1,300 items of historical significance from a Fall River home; a cache that has the region’s museum curators scrambling to determine if any of the pieces might be theirs.

The parole records show Tillmann’s criminal record dated back to 1988, and noted that he’d had a “difficult childhood, which included both physical and emotional abuse.”

Parole board members also said Tillmann had temper issues and had been involved in fights as a way of “getting respect.” They also said the accused appeared to have trouble with stress.

The papers did not elaborate further on the stolen goods issue, focusing more upon those of violence, and troubles with his mother.

He had previously been charged with abusing his mother, but those charges were dismissed. In the parole decision, Tillmann told board members his mother had “recanted” her allegations against him before she died, the documents said.

Board members also said he’d been involved a violence prevention program while behind bars and appeared to know how to deal with triggers that would lead to violence. They said he’d also let authorities in on illegal goings-on in prison and may have been set up by other inmates because of that.

Tillmann remains in custody in connection with the current stolen property case and is set to return to court late next month.

He’ll also be back in court on several other charges, including assault causing bodily harm to a former girlfriend and threatening to kill her dog. Those charges were laid in November 2011.